Kourtney Torres

ENG-123

Christine LeClair

July 28, 2021

5-6 Assignment: Persuasive Essay Draft

Within the last few years, there has been a major “canine boom” where people are

adopting/buying puppies for themselves/the family. Ever since Covid-19 happened there has

been an influx of “covid puppies” being rehomed, dumped, or given to shelters simply due to the

lack of training that was not provided during Covid-19 and the incidents that happened because

of it. Most dogs that are surrendered to shelters have little or no training. How does this have

anything to do with my career field? This relates to my field of work considering it has to do

with dealing with animals and wanting to prevent accidents involving dogs. I want to help dog

owners and their furry companions to the best of my abilities since they are considered our best

companions. While dog owners can make do with their at-home training, it is essential for canine

owners to obtain some sort of dog training certification because it creates a better owner/canine

relationship, helps build confidence and proper information and training can prevent canine

accidents.

Better human-animal companionships can be built through the bonding that comes with

training. Training can make them feel comfortable and safe around you. If your dog experiences

anxiety or tends to have a more timid overall personality then they can definitely benefit from

training. If the dog shows signs of bored chewing and destruction then that is their way of telling

us humans that they are bored! Training provides a way for us to communicate with our furry
companions and it provides a sense of accomplishment for them. (2019 Jaclyn) It also helps with

their mental stimulation. The positive attention from the training is what help builds that bond

between the two. It is even just a way for them to have fun and for you to spend one-on-one time

with your dog and that already is a way to strengthen the bond. Our dogs always want to be

close to us so training is the perfect activity for that. There is no specific training that works on

every dog so going and finding out what is best for the both of you gives you both more time

together thus furthering the development of the bond. If you happen to adopt/rescue a dog from a

shelter or bad situation then training is detrimental to helping the bond that needs to be formed.

They may not have had that prior training or connection with someone before so they may act

out a little because they're unsure and scared. By you training and taking that time out of your

day to help them overcome their fears, they’ll start to ease up and come around to you and start

creating that bond. Canines will start to listen to you better, trust you and be more forgiving once

they feel comfortable enough and training is definitely what can help with that.

Training also helps builds the dogs (even the owner’s) confidence thus resulting in better

and more favorable behaviors from both parties. Dogs tend to get frustrated when getting told

“no” or “stop” because they simply do not understand that what they are doing is wrong. Well, at

least wrong in our human eyes. It can even cause them to become resentful over time. They are

brilliant creatures so all they need is some love, attendance, and guidance. Once you got some

training down and they are starting to understand commands then they'll also become more

attentive to you. Over the course of time spent on training, you get to learn their body language

and what their triggers are. This information can help you with your training and make it more

focused on your dog's specific needs. Training also helps dogs understand the boundaries and

that can make the owner feel safe and secure with their companion and vice versa. Once training
is provided (should never end) our dogs get that sense of reliability with us and look at us for

reassurance and guidance in situations they are unfamiliar with. Once trust and confidence are

developed in the dog it will transpire in the owner too. Making for an overall happy, loving,

trusting, and confident pup and owner.

Lastly, the proper information and training can help prevent accidents that involve

canines. Going out in public can always be scary for the dogs and even the owners and that is

why training is such an important element. With training, you are able to understand their

boundaries and that is extremely important in public outings. You cannot have faith and trust in

other owners and their dogs so having your dog already trained, eliminates a lot of factors that

can cause potential problems. Your dog and you will know what is right from wrong and you can

have faith that your dog will act accordingly because that is what you trained them to do and they

can have faith that you prevent accidents from occurring. This does not just apply to public

settings, but to home life as well. As mentioned in my introduction paragraph, covid-19 created a

new problem for families and their lives at home. Most families tend to get animals for their

kids so they have a companion to grow up with but with that comes a few challenges. Some

families went from having their children in another form of care during the day to now being

home 24/7 and the same could go for the dog. The pandemic definitely created a few families to

develop some problems due to their new schedule. All of a sudden a dog who is used to being

home alone all day is now stuck in a house with the entire family and that can end up stressing

them out and they may start developing problems or bad habits. If an animal is brought home (or

is already in one) during this time when they have a new schedule to adjust to, problems are

bound to happen, especially if children are in the household. Kids tend to lack the understanding

of boundaries so if they choose to cross a dog's boundary, an unwanted accident is bound to

happen. There was a major rise in canine bites during the pandemic (Dixon & Mistry, 2020)

Proper training can help the dog understand when to walk away from a situation that is

uncomfortable as well as help the owner identify how to help with the situation.

However, I can see a side of this debate where people may not agree that it is essential to

obtain some sort of training certification. They may simply not find it a necessity when getting a

dog, or they simply may not have the finances to support the certified training if they went that

route. Some owners may not be financially able to obtain these certifications and they may feel

as if they can do just as well training on their own without having to pay for something. This can

be the case but obtaining the certifications would be more of a precaution. There are resources

out there available for low-cost or no-cost training. One can also find resources that offer

scholarships or simply help fund training. There is an organization that gives free handouts to

owners on topics one would consider important such as going over dog myths and tips for pets

and children. The Pet Professional Guild is a fairly new organization that at no cost, provides

owners with a hefty amount of information to educate owners. (Phenix et al., 2015) Another

challenge that may be faced is that some may not understand the need to work on proper

socialization and training when it comes to their dog. Roughly 75% of dogs in the U.S. never

receive training. That alone sets up the dogs for failure and they end up paying for it with their

lives, by ending up in the shelters, dumped, or euthanized- all due to a bite. Education is all that

is needed to make life easier, safer, and more convenient for the owner as well as the overall

safety of the dog. Dogs need a leader to help guide them and teach them boundaries to help

prevent unfavoriable problems. Shelters are full of dogs that get surrendered to an owner

acquiring a puppy without realizing how much effort you need to put into it.
In conclusion, as a dog owner, one has the responsibility to change the way we bond with our

canines, and how they act at home and in public and prevent accidents such as bites from

happening. Therefore, owners should be seeking out training and advocate for training when it

comes to dogs. Training is used to help create a stronger relationship with their furry companion

and create that bond that the dog is seeking out, help build that confidence in the pup/owner, and

help prevent accidents by gaining proper education and knowledge from training.
Resources

Jaclyn. (2019, November 7). The importance of training your dog - vet in St Charles: Loyal

companions animal hospital pet resort. Vet In St Charles | Loyal Companions Animal Hospital

Pet Resort. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from https://loyal-companions.com/the-importance-of-

training-your-dog/

Yuster, C. (2021, April 26). How does training build the human-animal bond: K9 reading

buddies. K9 Reading Buddies of the North Shore. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from

https://www.k9readingbuddies.org/how-does-training-build-the-human-animal-bond/#:~:text=It

%20Can%20Help%20Your%20Dog%20Behave%20Better%20In%20Social

%20Situations&text=As%20a%20result%2C%20training%20could,go%20out%20of%20the

%20house.

Jones, Michelle. (2019, October 27). 3 ways training helps you love your dog more. Off Leash

Dog Training. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from https://offleashdogtraining.com/off-the-leash-

blog/3-ways-dog-training-allows-you-to-love-your-pet-more/

Jalongo, M. R. (2021, August 18). Pet keeping in the time of covid-19: The canine and feline

companions of young children. Early childhood education journal. Retrieved July 31, 2022, from

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8372227/