Who’s the Boss!?

Oh, how cute! Look he’s claiming you The two pound Chihuahua lifted his tiny leg and whizzed three honey colored drops onto grandma’s cotton white knee high stocking. “Well isn’t he the cutest, he is so tiny he almost tilted over when he did it”. Everyone laughed and the very adorable little pup continued making his rounds, peeing on everything he put his little paw to.

This very scenario was the beginning of the most irreversible doggie disaster!  Little pups all over the world (and some adult dogs too) got wind of what happen to Grandma’s knee high TED stocking and begin to follow suite. There was spontaneous whizzing taking place on the snow hills of Minnesota, to the gorgeous historical architecture of Cinque Terre, Italy. Millions of pictures posted on puppy-gram of puppies large, small and in-between whizzing while sky diving and even on the statue of liberty. Puppy parents all over the globe tried to get these pups from freely whizzing. They tried treats, long walks and dog retreats which included roast beef gravy facials; nothing worked. Finally, these parents banned together across the globe to form an alliance against the wildly whizzing pups. Resistance broke out against the alliance of puppy parents, pups no longer whizzed because they needed to but because they wanted to. In the end, the darkest day came when the pups were forced to wear diapers, all trust had been broken.

Order was eventually restored in this story but at what cost? The question that arises is who is the boss in your home? Is it you or that cute little fellow running around on all fours. Many of you may answer matter-of- factly “me of course”. Well if we became fluent in dog (some of us already are) and we asked our cute companions, they would naturally disagree. Before, we band together to form an alliance let’s consider their perspective. They protect, entertain, keep us company, motivate us to exercise and ensure that we make it to the store; even if it’s just the pet store.

The linguistics of Puppy

Taking these wonderful acts into account, it makes no sense to correct these helpful little guys, right? Wrong! It’s naturally necessary. Let’s explore the smooth, choppy linguistics of dog. The word “family “translated into the language of dog means “pack”. The meaning varies slightly, the leader of the family or pack isn’t the one who brings home the bacon, but the one who exhorts the most dominance of the bacon. Even if it’s just you and your companion, it’s still considered a pack in the doggie world.

No Boss Is Cute…Except Yours

Let’s get to the bottom of who is truly the boss. Do you find yourself wiping up whiz more than you’d like to, or being yanked along a quiet trail toward the first sight of another furry companion, maybe coming home to a living room disaster? If you answered yes to any of these questions, take a good look at your adorable companion. That sweet face is the boss…for now. As a dog lover, you know accidents happen, but if these incidents happen more than three times a week…every week it’s time to reestablish who is the boss.

Three Steps to Stick To

1. Keep a Simple Routine-We don’t adjust well to swift change and they don’t either. Keep it simple and they will know what to expect. Keep potty and eating times consistent.
2. Say no and mean it – No in English still means no in doggie language. They are so cute, I KNOW! Remember they respect dominance, and no is how you establish it.
3. Give treats, give treats, did I say give treats! – We love to be complimented and so do they. Give treats when they do well and they will continue to do well.

Your comments, suggestions and stories are greatly appreciated!! Thank you for reading, I hope you enjoyed CHI CHI Talks.