Nearly every dog owner wants to train their dog properly.  However, nearly an equal number seriously underestimate the amount of time and effort it takes to teach a dog.  This results in a common set of misjudgments that are often made that could, with more or less effort, be totally evaded.

Dogs should not be considered hairy kids.  Even though the average dog has the psychological development of a two year old child, there are more contrasts than similarities.  While dogs are amazing at processing language, they are unable to reason as humans do.  They can’t put together cause and effect the way humans do.

For example, when you order your dog to “go lie down” you may want him to head to his sofa dog bed or kennel .  At the outset , if you don’t help him to make the connection between the command and his dog bedding by bodily taking him there as you are expressing the command, you are setting him up for failure.

This can end up being highly frustrating as the same command is repeated over and over, and the dog appears to brush off the commands.  usually it is not rejecting the command; it is likely that they don’t understand it.  It seems it should be straightforward because they’ve displayed the right behavior many times previously, but today they are being headstrong.

Some dogs probably would be called stubborn if they were human.  However, they can be thrown off easily or not be able to put together the command of “stay” today with yesterday’s behavior and subsequent reward.  There are some possible explanations for this behavior.

Patience is the one characteristic that dog owners must have.  You must be prepared to repeat those same commands over and over again, knowing that there will be times when you won’t get the results you await and want.  There are many dogs that may take up to two years to learn commands beyond the most basic to the degree that it really becomes second nature.

Don’t forget that patience means that you restrain your temper when what you really want is to lash out physically.  It’s common to think about taking the easy route of corporal punishment as the first reaction for improving the dog’s behavior.  On the other hand, this should be reserved for only the most serious circumstances.  The dog doesn’t really recognize why they’re being smacked.  This will not create confidence, but instead fear.

Never the less, dogs are like people because they also will more readily follow those that are trusted than those that are feared.  They only follow those that they fear when they have no other alternative.  But dogs make choices very differently than people do.  They usually endure any punishment they bear without really learning from it.  Corporal punishment is not a practical training technique.

Here’s how NOT to Instruct your dog:

•  Forget that your dog has a nature different from yours and speak to them like they were people.

•  Believe that a dog can connect events across time and situationscome to the same conclusion as you.

•  Get frustrated and irritable when they don’t respond as you expect them to. Yell at them for not behaving the way you want.

Follow these altogether ineffective methods and you’ll end up with a messed up dog and you will be an unhappy owner. But if these aren’t the results you are looking for, be ready to change YOUR behavior, before you try to change the behavior of the dog.

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Over the last few years, many companies have started pushing their products to us as “green” or “eco-friendly” or “organic”. Many of these products are actually consumed by their customer base and I am left to wonder what we were actually consuming in the first place. Please no one write me and give me a lesson in preservatives and growth aids as the previous question was more rhetorical than anything but what would have happened to our society had we continued on the path we were on?

My mother used to tell me all the time that she thought all of the additional hormones and preservatives added to our food was having a negative effect on our communities. She surmised that people are bigger, faster and stronger because of the residual effects of these hormones but that the negative effects were there as well. I tend to agree with her but wish we had a little more research to back us up. We know the obesity rate is constantly rising (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/news/fullstory_95897.html) but is any of this contributed to the hormones and preservatives we have all unknowingly been consuming? Did the rate of cancer grow? Heart disease? Birth mutations?

I work in the world of adult beverages, liquor, spirits and beer and I love what I do for a living. While our industry is extremely conscious and diligent regarding issues dealing with consumption only very recently has “being green” become a fixture on many company’s radar. It has certainly gone beyond the packaging to how the liquor is produced and the resources it takes to get there. However most cocktails come in a cup with a mixer(s) and garnish of some sort. Are those eco-friendly? What about the bar stool you are sitting on and the clothes the bartender’s wearing?

It’s great to see brands taking their first steps but I hope these steps turn into a movement or a cause.

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How can one survive without the use of plastic bags?  I remember when at the supermarket you would be asked – Paper or Plastic?  Now they don’t even ask you.  Or how about being caught out in the rain without an umbrella, a good make shift umbrella was always a plastic bag.

As much as they are convenient, the damage to the environment is increasing daily.  Each year about 100 billon polyethylene plastics bags are disposed worldwide and only 0.6 percent are recycled.   Many businesses look at the cost saving aspect to promote their business and for their consumer to carry their merchandise, but to make the transition to biodegradable bags is worth the cost.  This article states that biodegradable bags should be considered as an investment instead of an expense for businesses.

We the consumer get our bags from businesses and we should encourage our local businesses to make this transition to biodegradable bags.  I know I would not be able to live without this type of bag due to all the different uses for carrying things, storage or waste disposal; but to help the environment will be worth the few cents more to spend.

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