If you’ve been around dog training, you’ll have heard the saying, “Most of the time, it’s the owners who are the problem”.
I actually do not agree with this statement.
I think when it is used, most people mean, “Most of the time, it’s the owners who are the SOLUTION.”
So what’s the difference?
Most owners are good people. You care about your dogs and are doing their best to raise them right with the knowledge and skills you have at the time. You may make mistakes along the way and some of those mistakes may cause issues, but I do not believe we should be blaming owners for not knowing what they do not know. It is not an owner’s fault if their dog is genetically insecure and they do not know how to build their confidence. It is not an owner’s fault if their dog is high-energy and they do not know how to appropriately channel that energy. Owners are not purposefully creating issues, they may just not know how to fix a situation as it starts to go wrong. I do not believe in blaming or shaming owners in this situation. When an owner reaches out for help from me, I am almost always training them and not their dog. This is because meaningful change in the dog’s behaviour relies on meaningful change in the owner’s behaviour, but it does not mean the owner is the problem.
The owner is the solution.
