The Dog Behaviour Franchise Dilema

I have a deep concern about dog behaviour franchises.

There are so many dog training and behaviour franchises popping up around Australia. Is this good for dog owners?

I have trouble believing or even understanding that because someone attends a 2 to 4 week course, can then walk into peoples homes and call themselves a professional dog behaviourist! Yes 2 to 4 weeks!! This is the amount of training franchise holders do before being sent out to dog owners homes! For some this training is only part time!!

From my reading and understanding, many of these train their franchise holders to have a collection of aversive tools such as throw chains, squirter bottles and the like, and show dog owners nothing more than how to intimidate their dogs with tools such as these to gain control or correct unwanted behaviour, without any real knowledge, or understanding the root cause of why the behaviour developed or continues. Or they teach their franchise holders how to train a dog in very basic obedience, and also how to use tools to correct unwanted behaviour. These franchise holders are then sent out with a very very basic understanding of dog behaviour and psychology and very very limited hands-on experience, that does not in anyway prepare them or give them the required knowledge to deal with difficult and not so difficult cases. They tend to focus on the dog and use methods that try to correct the surface issues and not the underlying cause of the unwanted behaviour. Dog owners are not  in a position to know or understand how these franchises operate, the experience level or knowledge the behaviourist has, or the methods used. Most of the methods employed by these companies are so outdated, but they still use them, as to be able to correctly teach franchise holders indepth dog psychology and behaviour and to give them hands on experience with a number of different behaviour problems and different breeds would take many months of intensive training. Owning a franchise is about getting out there ASAP and start earning an income. Nobody wants to go into a franchise that would take many months of full time training.

I am at a loss as to how any dog trainer or behaviourist can train someone up in such a short period of time, and then allow them to be classed as a  professional! Isn't it more about the quick buck than actually offering a professional service? Get as many people out training for you and make a lot more money. I am sure that is thier philosophy.. I have no doubt that if I advertised franchises, I would get a lot of people wanting to purchase a franchise so they could get into the dog training profession the quick and easy way. And of course make me an immense amount of money! However I respect the fact that I could not pass on all of the knowledge and experience required in such a short period of time. If I was training a person to work for me, they would need to do a minimum of a years hands-on before I would consider them even close to a professional and allow them to deal with all types of behaviour issues on thier own in peoples homes.

It took me literally years of hands on with dogs to get to where I am now in regards to dog behaviour and psychology. To be able to read subtle body language, read what a dog is actually thinking and why. To be able to read the owners body language and mental attitude and the different energies they are projecting. To understand the underlying causes of the behaviour, and why they developed. To be able to sit with a client for 20 mins talking to them, and then understand exactly why the dog behaves the way it does, without even first seeing their dog. Understanding different drives and instincts, and the characteristics of different breeds I could never have learnt all that in a 2 to 4 week course! Nor could I teach these skills to someone in 2 to 4 weeks. It's ridiculous!

We really do need to tighten up this profession and not make it so easy to call yourself a professional, and be allowed to falsely inform dog owners that you are an expert in this field. How many actually inform their prospective clients they have only completed a short course of around 2 to 4 weeks, and before that they were just average pet dog owners with virtually no experience or knowledge? How many of these franchise holders do you read that had an out of control dog, and had a franchise company come to them, and then they ended up purchasing a franchise..and 4 weeks later are instant experts?

Modifying dog behaviour is not like running a dog wash service. We are dealing with a living being and working on modifying a dogs imprinted and hardwired behaviour, working on drives and understanding human and dog interaction. This should never be taken lightly. To suggest I could learn everything I need to know in just 2 to 4 weeks is really like saying we don't need psychologists to get a university degree, but go do a short 2 to 4 week course on human psychology, and then help people with psychological problems.

Sure there are a few knowledgeable dog behaviourists that purchase a franchise to help quickstart their income as a dog trainer or behaviourist. However most have never had any more experience than own their own pet dog and thought what a great way to make an income.

Many years ago I was contacted by a dog franchise company and asked if I would consider purchasing a franchise with them. It would only cost me $25,000. This was way back in the mid 1990's when I was operating a very small business in Townsville. The person I spoke to guaranteed me I could make a lot of money with their company. I was informed that I MUST adopt their methods only and would not be allowed to deviate from them, due to their terms of agreement. I knew the methods they used, and did not want to hold back on my knowledge and learning, to methods I did not totally agree with. Sure no doubt all those years ago my career as a dog behaviourist would have had a massive jump start. But I was not going to sell myself short, or that of my future clients. Also once I signed a contract with them, I would not be allowed to then start up my own business if I decided to walk away from their company. So obviously my reply to them was no!

I am not suggesting that dog owners not contact these franchise companies to see if they can help with their particular issues with thier dog, as I am sure there are a few franchise holders that do have the required knowledge and experience. But I am also certain they are the minority  I feel dog owners should question the company on the amount of experience, and number of years the dog behaviourist that will be sent out to help them has (this also goes for any company). Do they base their behaviour modification methods solely on aversive tools, or do they also work on more natural canine communication methods, to modify behaviour? Do they look for the underlying causes of the behaviour, and read dog body language correctly? Do they blame the dog for bad behaviour, and therefore only use methods that correct the dog? Do they just correct unwanted behaviour with aversive tools, as a quick fix?

An example

I went to a clients house that had one of these franchise holders out to help with a dog that was showing aggressive behaviour to visitors that came to the house. The owners were shown how to use a throw chain to literally scare the dog off. The end result was a dog that would run and hide when visitors came. When I went to the home, I instantly saw a very insecure little pack leader, that was trying to do his job the best he could. The worst thing the owner could have done was create even more stress in this dog by throwing a chain near it to scare it. I asked did the dog behaviourist explain to you why the dog was displaying this behaviour and how stressed the dog already was? They told me no, and said they were just told to correct the dog with the chain as shown and use a harsh voice tone. I shook my head in disbelief. Not only were these methods stressing out an already stressed dog, but the owners were not explained the underlying cause of the problem, and how their normal relationship with their dog was creating this stressed behaviour in thier dog. They had now, by using this method on such a dog, created even more stress than the dog was under initially. I explained to the owners that they were confusing their dog even more than it had been before this method was employed.

This is just one example where an inexperienced "dog behaviourist" offered advice that was totally inappropriate for the behaviour displayed by the dog. This dog behaviourist only saw an aggressive dog, and not understanding the type of aggressive behaviour or the reasons behind it.This person also did not realise that this dog was under a lot of stress already, nor the underlying reason for this stressed behaviour! When you do a 2 to 4 week course, what else can you expect? I do not blame the owner of the franchise for offering completely the wrong advice, I blame the company that trained this person and sent this person out having her/him believe they could solve any type of behaviour, with little to no experience or knowledge.