I’ve never owned a dog before because situations and circumstances prevented me from owning one. In addition to the fact that we never had one when I was a kid, I didn’t have a reference point to truly know what I was missing. As you may have guessed, we will be the proud owner of “a pup to be named later” Labor Day weekend (he was born July 3rd).
Needless to say, I’m so amped up to welcome our Goldendoodle to the Pudding Pack (you’ll understand when you see our family picture below). As exciting as this may be, there have been NUMEROUS people telling me how “horrendous” it will be to have a puppy around. Waking up in the middle of the night, accidents on our floors, chewed on chairs and shoes, etc… Translation: Your new addition is going to be so uncomfortable.
To prepare for the “pupster”, I just finished reading, “How to Raise the Perfect Dog: Through Puppyhood and Beyond” by Cesar Millan (The Dog Whisperer and Cesar’s Way). Admittedly, there are things in the book that are a little over the top, which should be expected for raising the “perfect dog”.
As a seasoned parent, my goal is never to raise the “perfect”… That sets the bar way too high. We want a disciplined, well-mannered pet around family, strangers, other dogs, the suburbs and the city. Is that a tall task? Not according to Cesar or my own experience coaching children, students, executives, and entrepreneurs.
The principles for training a puppy/dog are solid from a leadership perspective and should give us guidance to prepare for our uncomfortable additions. As a matter of fact, the book was so good I’m encouraging my wife and the two youngest girls (the ones who presented a 10 minute PowerPoint on the pros of owning a dog) to read the book so we are all ready to be Pack Leaders. I’m sure the PowerPoint mentioned piqued your interest, but that will have to wait for another article.
