Oversimplification

It's not that simple... It depends... Sometimes... is my response to virtually every question I am asked about behavior. Or anything else, for that matter.

"Can you help me fix my dog's leash aggression?" Maybe. It may be absolutely "unfixable" given the tools and pharmacology we have now. It may be practically "unfixable" given that you work too many hours to provide for your dog's needs. It may be entirely "fixable" given that you are simply inadequate at your leash usage.

I took a brief foray into what I had seen other trainers do -- e-mail training help. Ha! It was insanity. I think that it may appear "effective" for trainers who have one answer for everything. "NILIF" or "collar corrections" or "show 'em who's boss" or "click & treat". Trainers who don't focus on eliciting behavior, who don't accept each dog and owner as an individual, and who grossly oversimplify.

Why is the oversimplification so tempting? I propose a couple reasons. One is that the mind of dogs is perceived as very simple. That their cognitive abilities are limited, and therefore limits the range of possibilities. Another similar reason is that emotional issues are not recognized, nor are they separated from intellectual issues, because (they say) "Dogs don't have feelings. They aren't higher functioning organisms like we are. " Thirdly, and this is not intended as a put-down, the thought can only be as complicated as the mind producing it.

Yes, I AM a genius. It's not a big deal to me. I didn't ask to be born this way; it's just who I am. Being smart interferes with other people's ability to relate to me, because they have no idea what I am thinking, which is scary for them. (I don't always know what I am thinking, which, trust me, is just as scary for me...) I don't support the idea of intellectual elitism. I don't like the idea of judging people based on a quality they are no more responsible for than the color of their eyes.

That said, I feel a certain responsibility to share the raging complexity of my thoughts.

We think, "If the world seems complicated, that must be because we are stupid." We want to believe it is simpler so that we don't feel stupid. But, really, the world seems complicated and hard to understand because it actually IS complicated and hard to understand.

We'd like to think that we are in control of our experience of life. We find comfort in the idea that we can protect ourselves and our loved ones. We find optimism in thinking that we can change unpleasant situations if we want it enough, try hard enough, or merit enough.

Wanting to believe something does not make it so. We are not in control. We can have influence, but never control.