09/25/2026
This can make it tricky to pinpoint
what is helping their progress
and what may delaying it.
Rather than choosing sides or pointing fingers
in this type of situation,
I try to encourage clients
to find some middle ground
where they can both be consistently on the same page
and make it easier for the dogs
to make good choices.
It's been my experience that
if rules and expectations vary too much
within a household,
dogs will often begin to ignore
most of what both owners ask of them.
The humans in the equation
are making too many contradictory requests
and reactions,
and their potential influence on the dogs
declines overall.
Even if both people give up
a little of what.they believe is right
in order to be consistent,
it will still be a better outcome
than the alternative,
total irrelevance.
If this sounds familiar to you and your family,
I recommend sitting down
and making a short list of rules and expectations
that everyone can agree on.
If disagreements persist about specific scenarios,
it's always nice to have a neutral
but knowledgeable third party
(like a dog trainer),
to help mediate.
You can set up a lesson
for you and your partner or family,
even if it's more of a therapy session
than a dog training session,
that's often half of our job anyway 🙃 🫶
📹: Jess Vidana | Photographer
