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How to Create Consistency When Multiple People are Involved in Your Dog Training Process

An important aspect of dog training is consistency. Creating consistency between multiple people can be a challenge.  As result, I thought it would be helpful to share what I have learned to create consistency in households from my own experience and from my experience with my Salt Lake City dog training clients.

Here is an example of one behavior. If you are wanting your dog to jump less when visitors come to your house it is important to have everyone in the household be on the same page.  Your dog will have a difficult time learning to settle when people come over if some of the people in the household are allowing your dog to jump on people.

My personal experience has shown me how dog obedience can be destroyed quickly when consistency is not occurring.  When I lived with my daughter’s father, he was not consistent with Seiki’s training.  I watched the years of training and effort I put toward Seiki’s training, go down the drain.  Unfortunately in my situation, it wasn’t a result of communicating it was a result of allowing someone in my life that was not honoring my boundaries.  I am sure you can only imagine the frustration and anger I felt as a Salt Lake City dog trainer.  I would like your dog training experience to be different, so I was inspired to write this post for you.

1.) Get extremely clear with what you are wanting.  Meditate and visualize obedience success with your dog. What are you doing with your dog?  How are you performing the training?  What needs to be done by others so you have the support you need?

2.) Set clear boundaries.  This applies to romantic relationships, roommates, visitors etc.  Be clear on what is an absolute no for you and what will not work in your life. Before you have someone live with you, voice these boundaries and ask them if they are willing to honor them.  If it doesn’t work for them to follow these boundaries honor their request and look for someone else.

After my divorce, I decided as a single mom it would be helpful for me to have a roommate.  I was clear that I wanted to live with someone that loved dogs and was able to honor obedience training with Seiki.  As a result, I manifested a roommate that is great with animals and has much knowledge about clicker training.

3.) Clearly communicate in a loving way.  Express your wants in a friendly manner and avoid blaming other people for your problems. Here are some great ways to express your needs.

Training my dog is extremely important to me…. Would you be willing to……?

I am noticing that my dog’s behavior is not going in the direction that I would like.  I would like to create…..?  Would you be willing to support me in this creation….?

4.) Be able to accept “no” from others.  You cannot control other people.  If they are not willing to support you and it is a no for them, this needs to be honored.  However, your wants need to be honored too.  You have the option of coming up with a win-win situation that will work for the both of you.  You also have the option of voicing your “no” as well and coming up with a different solution. If you are struggling with this concept, Four Legged Scholars dog training, Salt Lake City is happy to support you!

5.) Place a sign on your door.  If part of your obedience training involves visitors, talk to them before they come to your house and make sure they understand how they can support you.  Put a sign on the outside of door to remind your visitors how they can support you and your dog.

6.) Re-evaluate.  If the obedience training didn’t go as you planned, evaluate what occurred.  What do you and others need to do keep doing? What do you and others need to do differently?  Now communicate it.

7.) Video tape professional dog training sessions.  If you are working with a professional dog trainer, and not everyone is able to attend all of the training sessions, you can video tape the training session on your Android or Iphone.  Then download the video to Dropbox.com or Google Drive.

8.) Shift your own emotions and be accountable before asking for support.  If you are feeling angry, fearful, or sad, this may not be the best time to discuss the training issues that are triggering you.  Instead, take a break from expressing yourself to the person.  Shift your emotions from a lower vibration to a higher vibration.  Once you have shifted, away from blame, now it is time to talk.

9.) Forgiveness.  Forgive yourself if you don’t communicate in a healthy manner.  Forgive your support system if they forget to honor your boundaries.  Having an open and receptive heart is important to your success. Now recommit to what you are wanting to create.

10.) You are not responsible for other people’s emotions.  Remember you are only only responsible for your own actions, thoughts and emotions.  Yes be conscious with how you speak and act.  However, you cannot control how someone else feels. Especially when you expressed in a friendly and loving manner, do not make yourself feel guilty for someone who is not willing to honor your boundaries .  This is a common issue I see with many of my Salt Lake City dog training clients.

11.) Hold family meetings.  If you have a large household. It could be extremely helpful to meet once a week with everyone in the household. Talk about applying the above concepts.

Your Turn!

Our Salt Lake City, dog training company is excited to hear your perspective!  How many people live in your household?  What tips above will you apply?  If you have already applied many of them which ones have you found to be the most helpful?

Namaste and Happy Training!

Johanna Teresi, Professional Trainer and Owner of Four Legged Scholars LLC, dog training, Salt Lake City

Blog Archives

Britnie Sorensen
Britnie Sorensen
18:11 06 Apr 24
This is our second round of training with Johanna! Our Bullmastiff Abbi is different from our previous dogs, and we knew Johanna would be able to help us. We reached out and were in excellent hands! Johanna was able to redirect our training efforts, majority of sessions were held virtually and supported with videos of us training Abbi. We will keep using Johanna no matter where life takes us. Her love and compassion for our puppy, and us, come through in every interaction. We are in a much better place and understanding of Abbi after working with Johanna!
Roberta Bonnell
Roberta Bonnell
01:37 24 Mar 24
My Australian Shepard had moderate separation anxiety and Johanna was able to help me get him to a point where I can see him being able to be home alone before the end of the year! Very grateful for all of her training expertise.
Karen Mara
Karen Mara
21:19 21 Jan 24
I recently met with Johanna for help with my rambunctious teenager, Roger. We worked on coming when called, leash walking, and staying calm around other dogs when on leash. After two sessions, Roger made huge improvements, and he continues to improve as we practice on our own. Johanna really understands dogs and is very good at communicating with people. She knows how to make dog training fun. I've worked with other trainers, and Johanna is by far the best.
Wendy Nighswonger
Wendy Nighswonger
18:47 08 Jul 23
I have known Johanna for 13 years. She has helped me with several dogs, but she recently helped me train my new black lab puppy, Raven. I have moved to another state so all of my training with Raven was done online via Zoom. I believe that the one-on-one training I received through Zoom was more personalized and thorough, especially with the way Johanna placed every ounce of training and recommendation on a board through an app that I can refer back when I need. Johanna is very intuitive and knew when stress was on overload for me, therefore tailoring my training for that day around making Raven feel good while simultaneously taking my stress load down. Johanna has years of experience and while her knowledge is a gold mine, it is her gentle patience and love for her clients that make this training so perfect. I would hire her again and again. She is a true canine whisperer. Thank you Four Legged Scholars and thank you Johanna!Wendy N. ~ Oregon
Christina Richards
Christina Richards
18:13 10 Feb 23
Johanna at Four Legged Scholars is great. She tailored my program to fit my needs and was easy to work with. My puppy responded very well to what she taught us together over Zoom. She's patient and understanding. We're still utilizing the things we learned and he's a well-behaved puppy. Thank you!
Karyl Bennion
Karyl Bennion
19:49 05 Feb 23
I adopted Frida as a companion that I could travel, walk and hike with. She loves to hike and walk but pulled on the leash and jumped at distractions. I learned how to be calm and talk in a non threatening way to her. She responds to this much better than yelling at her. The click and treat method that I learned works so well in getting her attention as well as the "target" training. Frida has improved greatly with these methods. I will continue the knowledge I have learned with her. I did the live on-line training and it was very successful. I am so happy we signed up.
Rachel Giddings
Rachel Giddings
02:57 12 Dec 22
My dog was abused in his previous home and has always been afraid of strangers. I wanted to train him and help him to be more confident, but I didn't know how to do that if he was afraid of his trainer.Doing online training with Joanna was perfect for both of us! Joanna helped me learn how to read my dog and understand his triggers. We then worked together on BAT training, which taught him self-soothing behaviors and showed him how to confidently and safely handle difficult situations. I never thought I would have fun doing homework with my dog, but he and I benefited from it tremendously. Working with Joanna via Zoom was perfect for my dog and me.
Shawn McMillen
Shawn McMillen
02:09 24 Oct 22
My 2 year old doodle was struggling with people walking by the house, barking incessantly, tugging on walks, improving recall when off leash and , for me, how to be a better more engaging human for my buddy. The personalized, online sessions exceeded all my expectations. The review of video homework sessions was awesome. We saw improvement in each of the priority areas and I developed real, tangible, lasting skills/tools to be a better pet person. Thanks Johanna!
Courtney Daniels
Courtney Daniels
19:59 12 Sep 22
12 years ago I got a puppy and quickly realized I was in over my head. I wanted to have a good, well trained dog, but I was overwhelmed by methods and my puppies behavior.I joined the four legged scholars puppy training with my little 4 month old puppy Bowie, and saw immediate understanding with the clicker work. It gave us this incredibly ability to communicate and she excelled.We went on to take several courses that established general obedience, helped me turn a STRONG leash puller into a loose leash master (I took that course twice because it was a huge issue for us and I NEEDED help and reassurance from Johanna that I could do it) as well as skill class, that helped solidify a beautiful relationship between us. Learning clicker shaping allowed me to confidently teach complex and unique commands on my own as well, like waving hello and closing kitchen cabinets.My Bowie has climbed to the top of mountains for me staying right by my side never pulling on her leash. I've targeted her off trails to protect her from startling a mama moose and her baby. She's loved on my kids without jumping on them and knocking them over. She's allowed the neighbor girl who has always had a fear of dogs to walk her without pulling at whatever pace she was comfortable with. She shows off with all her fun little tricks Johanna gave me the tools to train my dog into an amazing companion.I feel so lucky to have found your training program and to have the relationship I do with my Bowie girl. These courses have a profound and lasting impact on the lives of families and their pups, thank you for that gift.
Megan Pond-Maxwell
Megan Pond-Maxwell
16:02 18 May 22
I am so grateful to have found Johanna. She was with us every step of the way as we tackled separation anxiety training and reactivity training with Daisy, my Mini Australian Shepherd. As a first time dog owner, I felt at a loss about how to manage my very vocal, scared, stressed, yet loveable dog. She had all of the typical puppy behavior, such as jumping, nipping/biting, leash pulling, as well as barking. On top of that, she was also not able to be alone without feeling terrified, as well as vocally and behaviorally reactive to other dogs, adults, and kids. I felt completely overwhelmed and Johanna created programs that felt manageable and doable. Each training session, I felt understood and empowered working with Johanna. Over the course of our programs, I felt that we accomplished the steps of the training process, strengthened the dog-human relationship, and increased my own awareness of my dog's emotional cues so that I could better work with her. My dog can now be on her own feeling relaxed and playful, her problematic puppy behaviors have significantly improved, she can walk on her leash loosely, listen to commands, and she can better tolerate other adults, dogs, and children as compared to where we first started. Our online experience was very positive. I look forward to continually implementing the tools and skills we have learned along the way to move forward in a positive direction that strengthens our human-animal bond and reduces distressing behaviors and emotional stress and overwhelm. Thank you Four Legged Scholars! I highly, highly recommend working with Johanna.
Emily Harward
Emily Harward
03:36 24 Apr 22
Our rescue dog is sweet and playful with us, but her behavior around other dogs and people could be unpredictable. She would act aggressively around adults (lunging and barking), and would sometimes be aggressive toward other dogs. We chose to do online training with Johanna. I was skeptical that online training would work, but it ended up being very effective. Johanna taught me the skills I needed to train my dog, and provided resources that I could use throughout the week as I worked on the assigned tasks. I was also able to send her videos of me working with my dog, so she could provide feedback and help me improve. Johanna personalized the program and made changes as needed to ensure that I could meet my goals. Since working with Four Legged Scholars, neighbors have commented on how much better behaved my dog is, and I don't have to worry about her lunging and barking at people or other dogs when we are out for a walk anymore. We still have a lot of work to do with our dog, and I feel like doing the personalized online sessions with Johanna has given me the knowledge, and resources to continue training my dog.
Angel Lanoy
Angel Lanoy
15:22 16 Jun 21
We have a large family, including three big dogs. So when our biggest dog Obi, the Rottweiler, started showing aggression we panicked. The vet suggested we put him down after an experience in the office. He then said we could also try training and gave us Johanna's business card. Just a phone call with her made us feel like there was hope. We signed up to do the online sessions with FourLeggedScholars. The process from the first contact to the last was well oiled and very helpful. Obi gets to stay with our family now and we feel like meting with her has given us the guidance and knowledge we need to keep our family, friends and him safe. I was a tad worried about doing the training online, but it really worked out great and we were able to fit such a big task into our busy schedules. I feel like she set us up for success from the very beginning. Thank you.
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8 Comments

  1. ling wong

    Great tips – it’s so important to create consistency and set expectation.

  2. Patricia

    That is a great blog! Our lab is 8 years old, we had a trainer since she was a puppy, but when my inlays come over all that she learns go out of the window.. she knows she can get away with murder with them!

  3. fourleggedscholars

    Patricia, I totally understand. My parents are in town at the moment so I was really inspired to write this blog!!! I would love to know what you end up applying when your inlaws come in town!! I totally believe you can do this!! Best of luck to you and let me know if I can further support you! Namaste!

  4. Linda Ursin

    Consistency is definitely one of the problems here. Communication has been attempted, but the other party doesn’t want to listen.It will improve when I become the only adult in the house.

    • fourleggedscholars

      Hi Linda! Thank you for your post! I am understanding that you have communicated and the other party is not listening. On a deeper level what is this bringing up for you subconsciously? What is here for you right now to learn? For me when this happened it was time for me to honor my boundaries. If my husband wasn’t listening to me, I got enforce my boundaries anyways. This resulted, in divorce and now my dog listens well again 🙂

      • Linda Ursin

        That’s where it’s heading here too

  5. fourleggedscholars

    I am hearing that you are heading to enforcing your boundaries more. Is that correct? What actions are you going to take to enforce them?