Puppies Can’t Do Algebra

Toddlers can't do algebra, we all know that; Algebra is hard and it takes time to learn the basics before mastering something more difficult. If I told you to ask a toddler to do algebra, what would you say? “He’s just a baby, he can’t do that!”

Y

ou don’t expect a human child to understand that they can’t cross the street without you, that certain things don’t belong in their mouths, or that when meeting a stranger you should be polite, without being taught.

So w

hy did we develop the expectation that puppies or young adult dogs should be able to do difficult things like off leash recalls aka puppy algebra?

Imagine you have your 4 month-old puppy outside, where there are many exciting things to see, smell, and do. You call their name or give a recall cue in the midst of those distractions. When they don't respond or worse, they run off, you become frustrated or upset. Now imagine you have existed on planet earth for 4 months - what skills do you have? What understanding of the world do you have? You definitely haven't learned perfect communication with another species and are able to respond with a 100% success rate. So why do we have it in our heads that should be possible for a dog? Imagine a 4 month-old human - how many skills do they have? Not very many and that’s probably being generous.

The biggest difference between babies and puppies is that puppies are mobile at just a few months old. Yes, they grow up faster and they don’t live as long, but where is it written they come out of the womb knowing how to exist in our world? Why do humans assume dogs should already understand how to do everything they have never been taught?

“He’s just a baby, he can’t do that” should be the same response you have when people expect a 12 week old puppy to do things they haven’t been taught, or that a really hard to do. We as humans shouldn’t expect a puppy to understand these things when they have only been on the planet for a few months, especially when that planet looks a lot different to a dog than it does to us.

We anticipate we will need to teach a human child what behavior is appropriate and acceptable within our household, with friends, and out in the general public. We understand that a child will need guidance and boundaries (and even then they will want to make their own choices sometimes). We expect them to go to school throughout their childhood, adolescence, and into young adulthood to learn how to be a social, successful adult. We expect to teach our children even when they’re grown up! We never stop learning as human beings, so why do we have such vastly different expectations for our canine companions?

When a human child starts putting foreign objects, such as shoes and remotes, in their mouth, what do we do? We make sure those things are out of reach; We baby proof the house. When a puppy starts putting foreign objects in its mouth, what do we do? Most people scold the puppy, and continue to leave the shoes where they are, expecting a different result; As if their puppy is going to suddenly understand they shouldn’t chew on those shoes. Since we don’t want those things in their mouth, we should be removing access all together and giving the puppy something appropriate to chew instead. The more that the “naughty” behavior is repeated, the more likely it will continue, and the greater the risk of it becoming a foreign body surgery, or a behavior problem in the future.

Putting safeguards in place to prevent situations that you don’t want or that can be dangerous is called management, and it’s one of the most important things to consider when bringing a puppy home.  You do this when you baby proof your house when your once immobile human child starts crawling and walking. Suddenly the world is more accessible to them, so it’s your job to prevent them from making bad choices, because they don’t know any better. More importantly, it’s also your job to teach them how to make good choices. The same rules apply for puppies!

Puppies are mobile from the minute we bring them home, but puppies don’t come preprogrammed to suit your needs or your routine.  In fact, they come preprogrammed to suit their own needs. Dogs inherently like to chase, chew, herd, hunt, pull, guard… It’s in their genetics. That border collie you brought home, because it was cute, doesn’t know that you and your kids aren’t something they need to herd. Your husky doesn’t care that you aren’t attached to a sled on your walk around the neighborhood. Your terrier doesn’t listen when you call after they spotted a squirrel because prey drive and determination is written into their DNA.

Your dog is an individual with his or her own thoughts, feelings, and personality traits.  While you can have certain expectations for what is acceptable to you and your family, your dog may struggle to meet those expectations without your help and guidance.

Going forward, when you expect your dog to understand something and they aren’t getting it, stop and ask yourself: What would I do if this was a human child? Will you teach them how to hold your hand when crossing the street, or will you let them wander into traffic before you scold them for doing so? Are you going to let your puppy out the front door, then get upset when they don’t come when you call? No, because you haven’t taught them that behavior yet.

If you’re struggling with your puppy, reframe how you think about their behavior. Ask yourself, what would SUPERNOVA teach me to do? If you aren’t sure of the answer…send us an email! We are happy to help.