Don?t believe everything you see on TV

A number of my clients have told me about the “Dog Whisperer.” It usually begins with, “Oh, Cesar did this …” or “We’ve been doing what Cesar does.” Admittedly, I have not watched the show. Other than the morning or evening news, my wife and I only watch about three or four shows a week. And we try to catch most Buckeye games.Some of the veterinary journals have criticized Cesar because his methods still rely on “old school” behavior thoughts. Phrases such as “pack mentality” and “alpha dog” are not in vogue anymore. However, on Cesar Millan’s Web site, it clearly states that viewers soon realize it is not the dogs but rather the owners of those dogs who may be in most need of Cesar’s help.I enjoy the enthusiasm my clients display in pet behavior. However, I worry that they may not realize that pet behavior problems are usually not able to be solved in 30 to 60 minutes. What is more important to realize is that the majority of such problems might be prevented if we practiced “good” habits from the start.My high school basketball coach gave me three or four pearls of wisdom that I carry with me to this day. Probably the one that resonates in my head the loudest and I adhere to whenever I can is this: “You do not want to get in the habit of practicing bad habits.”Coach was a stickler for fundamentals. Practice good shooting form — nothing lazy. Box out everytime. Ball-you-man triangle. Don’t waste a dribble — go somewhere with a purpose. Square your shoulders to the basket.His point was to do it properly from the start. This is great advice if you are playing basketball, performing surgery, building a house, performing a secretarial role by answering phones, learning algebra, or raising a puppy (or a kid).Two common examples of practicing “bad” habits occur during potty-training and when a puppy is nipping.Whoever first thought that rubbing a puppy’s nose in their accidental elimination on your floor was a good idea? They should have their nose rubbed in their Depends. A puppy cannot figure out that you are mad at him for going on the carpet. He just thinks you are mad because you found his excrement. Do you think he is going to want to eliminate in front of you outside if you have this habit of rubbing his nose in it?As a kid I had a puppy that was a nipper. At an obedience class, I was told to press my thumb onto the middle of his tongue every time he nipped. Unfortunately, this is a bad habit which has become a reflex for me. Current behavior thoughts point out that “any interaction” with a puppy at the moment that it is nipping serves to inadvertently stimulate the negative behavior. Even that stern but gentle pat on the nose may be saying to him, “Game on!”The point is this: Do not fall into the pitfall of believing everything you see on television. Remember, television is still predominantly a form of entertainment. Even if the protagonist has a book or two, that does not make him or her an expert (they will, after all, let anybody write a book — or a column!).For solid advice on potty-training your puppy or getting him to stop nipping, start with your veterinarian. She or he may be able to prevent you from practicing bad habits that you heard from your friends, the internet, or even the dog expert on TV.Dr. Adam Ferguson is a partner at Baker Animal Hospital in Cridersville. He was always the 12th man on his basketball team. That’s right … the middle of the third squad! But he got a great deal on his basketball shoes, learned a few pearls of the game and life, and appreciates every minute he got to sit the bench — all 2,560 minutes from 1989 to 1993. Thanks, Coach, for more than you realize.