Calm Assertiveness

We've occasionally been catching The Dog Whisperer on National Geographic Channel on cable lately.

Very interesting to see Ceasar Milan get a dog to respond to him as "pack leader" in just a few minutes and change all types of bad behavior in a short period.

The dog owners often are nervous dealing with their own pets. The dog is able to pick up on the owner's insecurity and acts insecure in turn. Ceasar sometimes spends as much time training the owners as the he does training the dogs.

One of the key things that he preaches is "Calm Assertiveness." This is being calm and assertive around the animal in order to keep the animal calm and submissive.

We've been working with our dog to implement some of these strategies and get her to behave better especially on walks. Nikki has a tough time dealing with meeting other dogs.

I am finding that as I try and stay calm and assertive, she does a much better on the walks. Nikki doesn't pull as hard or try to go running of as much as she did in the past. It is much easier for me to keep her at my side. We're still working on meeting other dogs, but I am much more comfortable taking her out on walks.

But I am also finding that I can think of using the idea of calm assertiveness in others areas of my life. When I am in a tense situation , I find myself reminding myself to stay calm and assertive where appropriate. I am not getting so worked up about things and letting them rattle me. And I am trying to keep things in perspective.

Interesting how a pet show can influence our human behavior.