May 6-8, 2005
Natural Dog Training is a training method in which the owner learns to be in tune with a dog’s energies and work with a dog’s nature to channel its emotional energy in cooperative ways. There are two conventional approaches to explain a dog’s behavior: the theory of a dominance hierarchy, which is instinctual, and the science of classical and operant conditioning, which is mental. These approaches do not examine the subject of emotional development. What do dogs feel? Kevin Behan will present an emotional model that offers a more comprehensive and satisfying explanation for everything canine, from the evolution of wolves, the domestication of the dog, to the nature of the strong bond that’s emerged between dogs and owners in the modern world.
Dogs learn by heart. They feel their way through the world via “emotional sonar.” They are living, breathing, emotional sonograms. They send out a ping and long for a pong. On this retreat, we’ll learn how dogs feel what to do, and how this feeling approach relates to training, social behavior, and a dog’s innate faculty for cooperation. We’ll learn how to project emotion as a pure form of energy to a dog and receive it in turn. Body language and vocal tone can heighten, rather than interrupt, a dog’s emotional continuum.
Dogs are unconditionally loving by nature, so we don’t need to earn a dog’s love, but we do have to earn a dog’s trust, which we can do through empathetic communication. The most important part is listening to what dogs are trying to tell us. No one knows us like our dogs. Basic obedience can be mastered when the dog functions in harmony with its nature rather than struggling against it. This workshop is limited to 10 dogs, so each dog will get individual attention, though two people can come with one dog. When you sign up, we’ll send some additional information.
Kevin Behan grew up in the dog business the way some kids grow up in the circus. His father was world famous for training dogs for the Canine Corps in WWII and then for training dogs for protection, law enforcement, and hunting. Since training his first dog at ten, Kevin has worked the full spectrum of extreme behavior problems and extreme circumstances. The more he learned, the more he studied the science of dogs, always seeking the “truth of dogs.” In 1981 he started his own kennel, while also pursuing his other passion, the world of nature. After countless hours watching and listening, he realized it is the dog’s wild nature, not his submission, that lets him bond with us. Forcing a dog to repress his natural energy leaves him blocked and unable to cooperate consistently. Releasing and channeling his energy leaves him open to us on all levels and in all situations. In 1992 his book, Natural Dog Training, was published, and we are pleased to welcome him on his first visit to Rowe.