Onus on Owners - Falmouth MA

[Rene Allegrini]

By Amanda Lehmert

STAFF WRITER
June 10, 2007

FALMOUTH — There are no bad dogs — only bad dog owners.

So goes the wisdom of dog trainers, animal control officers and animal behaviorists, who say that any dogs, including those with the worst reputations, can be docile beasts in the hands of a competent owner.

Want a good dog?

Be a good dog handler. Here's some ways to make your dog a prized pooch:


Start a dog out right. Puppies need to be socialized in their first 12 weeks of life. Dog trainers offer "puppy kindergarten" for this purpose. Or check out "Puppy's First Steps," a guide to raising a good dog written by the staff of the Tufts University veterinary school.

Be the alpha dog. Dog owners want a best friend, but dogs need a good pack leader. Set behavior standards for your pup and stick to the standards consistently.

Take the challenge. If you have a difficult dog, become a better owner by taking a class or a one-on-one session with a dog handler. "If you don't have any skills you are going to get into trouble with a dog that's position in life is that they don't want to follow someone who is giving mixed signals," said Melissa Berryman, a Falmouth dog handler who runs a program called People Training for Good Dogs.
Falmouth selectmen indicated they would consider tightening animal control laws after a recent attack involving two Rottweilers and children on a playground in East Falmouth. Selectmen have opted to euthanize those dogs — a decision owner Laura Warren likely will appeal, according to her lawyer. Warren is also facing possible criminal charges of assault and battery, disorderly conduct and failure to muzzle a dog. She will go before a magistrate on June 20.

But several local residents have called for an outright ban of big dogs such as Rottweilers and pit bulls. It's a sentiment animal experts abhor. If folks want safe dogs, the experts say, advocates should ask that pet owners be more skilled in managing their animals.

For the small number of lethal dog attacks in the United States — about a dozen annually according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention — three breeds invariably show up as the usual suspects: pit bulls, Rottweilers and German shepherds, said Nicholas Dodman, an animal behaviorist at the Tufts University veterinary school.

"You don't often see reports of killer Chihuahuas on the loose," Dodman said.

But any dog can bite given the right mix of circumstances, experts say.

Some dogs were originally bred for fighting or personal protection. But those ingrained personality traits alone don't dictate the way an animal acts. It's a matter of size, temperament and animal instincts, Dodman and other experts said.

"It doesn't matter whether you get a little Chihuahua or an English mastiff," said Joseph Mendonca, who owns Joseph's Obedience Training School in Pocasset and has raised champion German shepherd show dogs.

"You need to look at what they were bred for."

Even the toughest dogs can be safe family pets in the hands of a competent owner, experts say.

Falmouth Animal Control Officer Thomas Garland said he has received several calls that a vicious dog was on the loose, only to find a different situation when he actually confronts the animal.

"You get there and it will lick you to death," Garland said. "Just because it's a pit bull, people think it will eat your children."

As pack animals, dogs of any breed can range from the docile, low-ranking dog that will follow your every command to the challenging dog that requires a strong leader to control, experts say.

"There is a range of normal that we fail to accept in dogs," said Melissa Berryman, a Falmouth dog handler who runs a program called People Training for Good Dogs.

"We covet these low-ranking animals. The dogs that challenge us are 'bad.'"

Pet owners sometimes lack the ability to properly assess their own dog-handing skills, Berryman said. Just because you have owned dogs before does not mean you will be able to control all dogs, she said.

And too few people consider a puppy's temperament — although it is evident at a young age — when they are choosing a canine companion.

Owners must take responsibility for their pets, experts say: Avoiding trouble requires not just the proper nutrition, health check-ups and attention, but also dog handling skills for the owners.

It's especially crucial when the dog exhibits unacceptable behavior that the owner can't control. Mendonca urged dog owners to seek help as soon as a problem arises.

"If you had a sick child, you wouldn't wait four years to go to the doctor," he said.

Amanda Lehmert can be reached at alehmert@capecodonline.com.


Life or death

A Falmouth woman is appealing a town order to have her Rottweilers euthanized after they attacked students.

http://www.capecodonline.com/apps/pb...0321/-1/NEWS01