If anybody tells you that dog behavior modification is fast, easy and simple to do, that person would be lying to you. In order to modify the behavior of a dog, you really need, at a minimum, 3 weeks. Whenever I am going to work with a dog, I do a meet and greet to make an assessment of the dog and the expectations of the pet parent. Abby, a 2 1/2 year old Beabull, ate so fast that she would toss her cookies right after she inhaled her food. I tried a lot of different things, including a funny looking dish and at the beginning it worked, but later on she went back to puking on and off. Because of that, I changed the way I did things with her: she started by eating in her kennel; I did not talk to her at all, no commands, nothing; I was the only one feeding her; and all I asked from her was to give me eye contact right before I put her dish down.
So, how is Abby doing right now? She hasn’t tossed her cookies in a long time and I no longer have to use the funny looking dish I got for her unless I want to. What I was doing with Abby was behavior modification, and I can tell you from experience that it takes time, consistency, patience, repetition, and a thorough knowledge of dog body language that most pet parents lack. For that reason, I’d recommend that you find the right person to help you. Ask a lot of questions, and don’t buy the, “I can fix your dog in 1 week for only $1,800”. If you find someone like that, don’t walk, run, and run fast. Behavior modification takes time and depending on what you are trying to change it can be quite complex.
