Bad Puppy—Why I Got Into Dog Training

00:00 — Kati Peppe introduces Off Leash and Unfiltered and identifies herself as the owner of…

Welcome to Off Leash and Unfiltered. Trigger warning. I'm Kati Peppe, delivering the truth in dog training.

Hey everybody, Kati Peppe of Diamond K9 Dog Training, and welcome to my very first episode of Off Leash and Unfiltered. I am so excited to be starting this podcast, um, and have this new avenue and this new way of reaching people, um, that I might have otherwise never reached. So, um, I just have so many things I wanna rant about <laugh>, and so I don't wanna bore you with details about who I am and where I've been and what I've done. Um, I thought about that and I decided that was just too boring. So, but just so you have some idea who I am, um, I am a dog trainer and I own Diamond K9 Dog Training.

I operate outta southern Maine. I have a facility in Biddeford, primarily a board-and-train operation. Um, I do some private sessions, although I don't do a ton of them anymore.

I still offer them, uh, one day a week. And I focus a lot on off-leash reliability, behavior modification, um, and also like puppy raising too. So, um, and I do a lot of state of mind work with dogs as well. So, so that's who I am, that's what I do. And I have, um, social media accounts that you can, you can visit: Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and see a lot of the training and what I do, um, however, I really felt I needed, uh, another avenue not just to reach a larger audience and more people and to help more people, um, which is really what I'm passionate about with this.

But I also wanted sort of a place where I could be a little more casual and laid back. So, I mean, I'm a pretty casual laid-back person anyway, but this way I can rant and rave and, and give tips and all sorts of hopefully helpful or entertaining things.

Um, but I can let my hair down a little bit when I do it and maybe have a glass of wine and use a little profanity when I do it. So <laugh> if that suits me. So, um, it won't be that bad, but, you know, if, if the mood strikes me, I can, and trust me, the mood does strike me. So, um, you know, some topics more than others. So we're gonna discuss all that hot-button stuff. Um, but today I just wanted to maybe start with something that made the most sense to me was to talk a little bit about the dog I had when I first got into dog training.

'Cause I think that makes sense for my first episode. Um, so this is how I got into dog training, and I think what I have to say about it could help a lot of people out there, which is, of course, important to me.

So I'm all about, um, spreading the truth because there's definitely an agenda out there and a lot of effort to suppress the truth and hide the truth, um, and keep people stuck. Not that I think people genuinely want people to stay stuck, but some people are so in their heads about the process, and I think they really, more than they wanna help dogs, they hate people <laugh>. Like I really believe that. And, uh, there's a lot of, there's just a lot of that flying around nowadays, and it's coming from people that are supposed to be professionals and organizations that are supposed to be professionals and are supposed to give us guidance.

And they're, they're making statements that are just false and people are, are staying stuck and dogs are staying stuck and dogs are being put down and people are getting hurt, um, because of this.

I really, really believe that. I see it all the time. Um, and so I'm just doing my teeny tiny little part in my teeny tiny little corner of the world to make sure that I'm putting out there what I know and what my skillset is and what I've done and what I've seen, so that hopefully I can reach people and help them, whether it be something really simple, like getting your dog to stop counter surfing <laugh> or something, uh, really difficult. Like, you know, my dog wants to kill my other dog, or my dog is uncomfortable around kids or, you know, that sort of thing.

So the full range of behavioral issues, I just think the general information that's out there sends most people backwards. So anyway, the reason I got into dog training was I had a terrible dog, guys. So <laugh> I had, and I had already been thinking about getting into dog training because my life was kind of in turmoil.

05:00 — Kati describes having a baby, getting divorced, and leaving corporate work while raising a…

So I had actually just had a baby, was getting divorced and decided to quit my long-term career in corporate America because I had just had enough of that. I'm not <laugh>, I'm not cut out for that. Uh, and I can't believe that I spent as much time there as I did. But, you know, although I might feel like that time was wasted, I actually did learn a lot. Um, but, so here I am, you know, in the midst of all these huge life changes and I have a puppy, I have a little Rottweiler puppy and I love Rottweilers.

I've had Rottweilers before and I have a real soft spot for them. It's a great breed. Uh, can be challenging, of course, but it's generally speaking a really great breed. And, um, this one was not like the others. And I hear that a lot too. So I meet a lot of clients who say, you know, I've had this dog for, not this dog, but I've had this breed of dog for 30 years and I've never had one like this.

You have to remember, they're all highly, highly individual. And so anyways, long story short here, we drove all the way to Ohio, and I live in Maine, so we drove all the way to Ohio to get this puppy and 10 minutes into the car ride home, I said, this dog isn't right <laugh>, so this dog's not right. So, but rather than turn around and go back, um, and, you know, probably get into an altercation to see if I could get my money back, uh, we drove home. And of course too, at that point you're thinking, oh, well, you know, the dog is just stressed and new people and, excuse me, new car and all these things.

And I suppose those things are true, but I knew, um, in the back of my mind that the behavior I was seeing was a, a real red flag. So, but you know, you hope for the best and you think, well, we're, we will get home, we'll get the puppy settled in, we'll start working with her and it'll be fine.

Well, it wasn't fine, it wasn't fine at all. <laugh> So, uh, she was a biter, she was a resource guarder, and she was about 11 or 12 weeks old at this time. She would attack my husband if he walked across the room. She, you know, was growling and biting over food and bones and that sort of thing. Uh, she would go crazy when someone came to the door. And I don't just mean bark, I mean, before they could even land the second knock on the door, she already had all four paws in the air, had spun around and done a 180 and was blowing her anal glands and barking and growling uncontrollably.

So not normal behavior, especially at this young age. It was really, really something <laugh>. So to this day, I have never met a dog, um, as bad as her <laugh>. So we had all kinds of trouble.

You name it, we had it. So anyways, this sent me on this journey to find the right information. And let me tell you, if you look on the web at how to inhibit behaviors, meaning reduce or eliminate behaviors, you are not gonna find the right information. It's very, very hard to find. So if you are, you know, looking online and you're seeing all these things about, you know, how to wait or how to be a tree and how to distract your puppy with treats and that stuff probably isn't going to work, okay? So don't feel bad.

08:00 — Kati argues that reward-based distractions have limitations when addressing reactivity and unwanted behaviors.

So if you're discouraged right now, you don't need to be <laugh>. That stuff doesn't work for, for most cases. So that stuff's great and it has its place, but not when we're talking about reactive behaviors or trying to stop unwanted behaviors. And that stuff is not so great.

It's not effective on most dogs. Now, I'm not a big all-or-nothing person, so it's very rare that you're going to hear me say that something never works or it always works. Um, I think everything kind of exists on a continuum, on a spectrum of sorts. And, and this is no different. So you've got dogs that are very, very soft and sensitive, and you've got dogs that are very, very hard and pushy, um, and everything in between. And the same thing with, you know, your methods and your protocols and your consequences. You have everything from high reward to sort of neutral, to very unpleasant.

So we have to take all that into consideration. But generally speaking, you know, just ignoring things or using rewards in some way does not usually eliminate or reduce behaviors. So, and, but that's what all you're gonna find online, <laugh>, that's mostly what you're gonna find.

So don't worry if that's not working for you, that's normal <laugh>. Okay? So anyways, this dog was terrible, and so I'm working with her and I'm teaching her things and I'm, I'm trying to teach her all her commands and I'm trying to, uh, reduce and eliminate some of these really terrible, awful behaviors and get her doing some other stuff instead. And I'm having a really terrible time. So I start looking at trainers and I'm going to see trainers, um, all over the state. And I live in Maine, and it's a big state. It's pretty rural, but it's big.

And there's plenty of dog trainers here, okay? And none of them are helping me. They're all giving me information and I'm doing it. And sometimes it seems to kind of work in the moment, but long term, it's not getting me any traction at all. In fact, things are getting worse.

Um, and then I, you know, I make an appointment to go see this trainer who had a great reputation, um, was involved in training service dogs and police dogs and things of that nature. And he had tons and tons of experience and I was excited to go see this person. And so we go to see this person and I bring my dog and they evaluate my dog. And, and I say, so what do you, what do you think? And he says to me, I think she's a blank slate. And at that point, I could have broken down and cried right there.

I didn't, but I'm sure I did that night because, with all due respect, Mr. Experienced Trainer, that is a really stupid thing to say, <laugh>. Okay? So, so I try not to be judgy, right? But I told you I'm gonna kind of let loose here.

11:00 — Kati rejects a trainer's blank-slate assessment, emphasizing that dogs inherit behavioral tendencies.

So that is a, a very foolish thing to say. And the reason that's a foolish thing to say is your dog is not born a blank slate, guys. And so this might shed a little light too on why you're struggling if you're struggling with things. No one's born a blank slate, okay? We all have genes and genetics and DNA. There's no way you can be born a blank slate. And that stuff matters, okay? It matters a lot. So think about dogs that are bred for hunting, like pointers, okay? Nobody teaches them to point. That's just in their DNA, okay?

Some dogs tend to be more aggressive, some dogs tend to be more gentle, right? How many people do you know? You probably know somebody who has two different dogs. They b- they raised both of them in the same house, same family, same day-to-day routine.

Their dogs have two completely different personalities, okay? No different than you and your siblings if you have siblings, right? You're raised in the same house with the same people, but you're different in a lot of ways because you have different DNA. So yes, experiences matter and training matters, but you're taking those experiences and that training and you're mixing it with the dog's DNA. So those, even if the experiences and the training are same for a different dog, they're gonna look different because they have different DNA to begin with. So all behavior is DNA, genetics, plus training and experiences.

So just remember that, um, 'cause where you are and the behaviors your dog is, is giving you is not entirely your fault because your dog was born with these tendencies to begin with. So, but you don't wanna nurture them and you wanna know how to address them.

And, and I've got tons of information out there on this stuff, and I'm sure this podcast will continue to be a source of that information for you, hopefully. So anyways, fast forward three years, and I took this dog really, really far. I mean, I found the information, but it was really, really hard to find. Um, and I don't mention names on this podcast, but there are some good trainers out there if you really look and they do have some good stuff, um, online that can probably help you. So keep looking and you know, I, I've got my channel as well, which hopefully will have some helpful information on there for you.

But you really wanna find a trainer that isn't afraid to tell you the truth. And the truth is that your dog needs to be corrected. Okay? So very first episode here, that might be the biggest piece of information I ever give you.

Your dog needs to be corrected. You need to learn how to properly give your dog a meaningful correction and God, no, it's not a cure-all, but if you wanna inhibit behaviors, that's a skillset you need to have, okay? And if you don't do that, then just expect everything to remain optional forever for your dog. So I guess that's the key, right? It's not that all dogs necessarily have to have a meaningful or uncomfortable correction, but everything remains optional until you do that. So depending on who your dog is, you know, if they wanna do a behavior or they don't wanna do a behavior, it's just gonna be their way, um, until you make it non-negotiable, okay?

And so that's critical. That's critical. I cannot believe that that information is so hard to find. Um, nowadays, our, our culture has just shifted away from common sense.

Um, and we could, you know, apply this to just about <laugh> any category of life right now, totally shifted away from common sense and what we see with our own eyes and what we know to be true, you know? And people often say, oh, it's just like kids, and I correct them. And I say, no, it's not just like kids. It's just like you and me. Okay? I was exhausted this morning. I didn't wanna take my daughter to school. The alarm went off and I said, oh my God, I can't do it. I'm completely exhausted.

I have a migraine, I'm being sucked back into sleep. But guess what? I got up and I brought her to school <laugh>, because the consequences of not doing that are intolerable. My daughter has to go to school. It's important, okay? She needs to learn things to function in the real world.

She needs to have good attendance in order to do that. Um, I also don't need my ex criticizing me for not bringing her to school. There are all kinds of reasons, right? <laugh>, but my daughter has to go to school, so I get up and I took her. Um, however, if those, none of those things were important to me, then I probably wouldn't have, right? That's how that works. So anyways, uh, three years later, I took this dog very, very far. We inhibited a ton of behaviors. Um, but you know, she was still herself. And I, I think that comes back to everything existing on a spectrum and on a continuum.

It's like, okay, everybody has to decide if they have a dog that has exhibited these aggressive behaviors. You have to train them as best you can and build as many skills in them as you can and inhibit as many of these unwanted behaviors as you can.

And then you have to decide, is this dog safe enough to live in my home? And most of the time you can absolutely get there, but sometimes you can't. Sometimes you can't. And ultimately what ended up happening was she landed a bite on my daughter, and this was three years in. And I had just started to think, you know what? We've really turned a corner. I think we've made it. She still has major problems, but they're manageable. I'm a responsible dog owner. We have a good set of skills, right? She has a good set of skills.

17:00 — After her dog bit her daughter, Kati decided the dog remained unsafe despite years…

I've now got a good set of skills. Um, I know what she is and isn't capable of. My daughter knows the rules about interacting with the dog, and I thought we're gonna be okay. And we just weren't. We weren't okay. She landed a bite on my daughter.

Um, and that was the day that I finally just decided she's not safe enough. You know, if we're this far in and I've done this much work and I've taken her this far and we still had an accident like this, she's just not safe enough. And that's a very personal decision, um, that people have to make. And I think this whole notion of rehoming your aggressive dog is just ridiculous. Um, so I'm sorry. I'm a, a huge proponent of rehoming dogs, right? Because every home is so different and every dog is so different. And absolutely a dog might be a poor fit in one home and a great fit in another, but if your dog has aggressive tendencies, you are putting other people at risk and that should weigh very, very heavily on you.

So I think it's important to assess, like, how dangerous is your dog?

Like, let's be honest with ourselves, what could happen? Who's taking the dog? Are they well aware of this? Are they equipped to deal with it? You know, 'cause really why would anybody wanna deal with it? There's so many dogs out there, there are great dogs that are put down every day just because there's no room for them. So why does somebody want to take your aggressive dog, right? So when I hear that, I question if the people really know what they're getting, right? And if they do, fine, maybe it's fine. But I'm always very, very leery of those kinds of situations.

I think it's important to be super upfront with people and even then, you know, it, it kind of has to weigh on you, it's on your shoulders. If down the road somebody gets hurt, um, and we've had more dog deaths, um, not dog deaths but deaths from dog maulings, um, which obviously is a very extreme and doesn't happen that often, but we've had more over the past few years than we have ever had before.

So, um, you know, injuries and deaths from dog-related, um, maulings and that sort of thing is definitely on the rise. And I think rehoming aggressive dogs is probably part of that. So in my opinion, if your dog has exhibited true aggression, you need to try to figure that out and get that fixed and get your dog into a better headspace, um, so that you can actually live together safely and happily. Or maybe you need to put that dog down. So, and I wanna be very clear that 90% of dogs anyway can absolutely do better, okay?

20:00 — Kati discusses behavioral euthanasia and recounts choosing it because she believed rehoming her dog…

You can get your dog into a better place if you're committed. Absolutely. We do it all the time. Um, and I see it all the time, but if you can't or won't, then maybe the safest, most responsible thing to do is to euthanize that dog—behavioral euthanasia.

So it's not an easy thing to do. Um, it's really, really hard. It's difficult. Um, but in my case, I absolutely knew if that my dog went to another home, somebody was going to be hurt. Um, and I couldn't have that. So, um, I absolutely invested everything that I had and then I made the decision I thought was the right decision. And, uh, it was really hard. It was hard to make the appointment, it was hard to drive into the office and it was hard to stand there and, you know, be with her while she took her last breath with a muzzle on, no less, because the vet couldn't get near her, of course, <laugh>.

So, um, so that's just the ugly truth of the matter. But I wanna be very clear, you know, if you're wrestling with any of the stuff with your own dog, I am absolutely not saying go put your dog down.

There's hope. There's so much. Once you get your hands on the right information and you get on the right track, you can absolutely get your dog into a better place. But sometimes there are dogs that just aren't going to be safe enough in a family setting. So that's, um, something you need to honestly assess, you know, absolutely put in the, the time and the work and the effort and the commitment and the training, but at the end of the day, you have to be honest with yourself about whether or not the dog is safe enough to stay in your home.

So there's that. But anyways, guys, I'm gonna wrap it up. I'm gonna be back really soon to do my next one 'cause I'm so excited about this. But I hope that the takeaway you get from this is, number one, most of the information on the web just isn't accurate.

So don't worry if it's not working for you. Number two, corrections need to be part of your life and your training with your dog. And if they're missing right now, then it is absolutely no mystery why you're struggling. We call that normal <laugh>. So your dog needs both reward and correction. Um, otherwise everything just remains optional. So you're not gonna get great results in a lot of cases. Okay? And the third takeaway is if you're dealing with super aggressive behavior, it can actu—it can absolutely be better, it can absolutely be better. But if you go through all the work and you do all the training and you really have tried everything, not just like those people that say they've tried everything but they've really only tried cookies.

23:00 — Kati says owners need not feel obligated to rehome a dog that remains unsafe…

If you've really tried everything and you've worked with trainers and you've put the work in and your dog's still not safe, then you absolutely should feel like you have permission to let your dog go, okay?

And not feel like you're obligated to rehome your aggressive dog into somebody else's house. Alright, guys, I don't wanna end this on a sad note. This felt like kind of a sad episode, but it's not. I'm super excited. I can't wait to come back and do the next one. So I'll be back hopefully shortly. Um, and we'll talk about some new exciting topic and maybe you'll get to hear some of my random raving, I'm not sure. But, uh, I look forward to it and I hope that you walked away with some kind of new information today.

Okay, guys, that's it for today's episode of Off Leash and Unfiltered. Don't forget to subscribe so that hopefully we can do this again real soon and get training your dogs. I'll talk to you next time.